Firm's Success Multiplies

When people talk about the state economy and the need for it to grow, they're often referring specifically to the grass-roots level.

That's where it all begins -- with small business.

And considering that 80 percent to 90 percent of small businesses fail, success depends not only on luck, but on a fair amount of creativity and willingness to take measured risks.

That's exactly what Tony Cashman of West Hartford and Edward M. Katz of Westport had to tap into years ago when they formed a company that now focuses on advertising and public relations.

``Everyone thought we were crazy when we started in the early 1990s,'' Katz recalled. ``Retail businesses were sucking wind, and no one thought we could make it.

``They gave us less than two years to go out of business. Then at two years they said we wouldn't last five.''

But here they are, at five-plus years and going strong.

After starting out in Cashman's Cromwell apartment, the two have established a business that employs about a dozen people and has $9.5 million in annual billings.

Late last year, Cashman & Katz Advertising and Public Relations bought its own building at 76 Eastern Blvd. in Glastonbury, and is spending about $200,000 on renovation.

Hoping to complement the company's services, the partners decided earlier this year to form a second business known as Connecticut in Focus, which specializes in marketing research.

``When you do advertising, it's critical that the message is tested. That's why a lot of companies have focus groups. When you come up with an idea for a client, you have to back it up with quantitative and qualitative research,'' Cashman said.

The new company offers facilities for one-on-one interviewing, mock juries and focus groups for brainstorming new ideas and testing products and concepts. Focus groups are used to assess people's reactions to ideas, products and commercials.

There are only a handful of similar research facilities in the state, and Cashman said that none compares to what Connecticut in Focus has to offer with its basic features and amenities, including a spacious focus room with a separate entrance, ensuring no interaction between viewers and participants; a tiered viewing room with wrap-around, one-way mirrors; remote-controlled video and audio taping; and a separate client lounge with private phones, computer, fax and copying machines.

Cashman and Katz also recently hired Mary Ann Pacocha, who worked for 15 years at the Hartford Research Center of Wethersfield, to be the director of Connecticut in Focus.

``Mary Ann knows all the moderators of focus groups in the Hartford-New Haven area. Her connections are already bringing in new clients,'' Cashman said.

Cashman and Katz met about eight years ago when they both worked at WFSB-TV, Channel 3.

``We got this crazy notion to start our own business,'' Cashman said. ``We started out as a media buying firm, buying TV, radio and newspaper space out of my apartment.''

As with most small businesses, success did not come overnight.

``It took a lot of hard work,'' said Cashman, who is 31. ``You have to be able to go without pay for months. I don't have any kids and I'm not married, so I didn't have all that to worry about.''

Katz, 39, who is married and has a child, said he wouldn't have been able to do it without his wife, who also works.

After some struggle in the early days of the company, Cashman & Katz began to land some significant accounts such as the Connecticut Higher Education Trust, Mohegan Sun Resort in Montville and Lake Compounce amusement park in Bristol.

Cashman & Katz has also been involved in creating political ads, in '94 for former state Treasurer Chris Burnham and in '96 for U.S. Rep. Nancy L. Johnson.

Both partners say their personalities are like ``night and day,'' but they are also quick to emphasize that they work well together.

``We're raising the bar now,'' Cashman said, ``and we're trying to grow. We're trying to position ourselves as a pre-eminent company for Connecticut.''